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Sunday, June 30, 2013

Introducing author Jerome Brooke. I will be reviewing Jerome's book The City of the Mirage in a few weeks - watch for it!

1. Tell us a little about yourself.Jerome
Brooke lives in the Kingdom of Siam. He is the consort of Jira, a
princess of the lost Kingdom of Nan. He has written The City of the
Mirage (Books to Go Now) and many other books.

2. When did you start writing, and why?I have been writing poetry for about 20 years - fiction for 10. I began to write because I wanted to create art and beauty.

3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?I
have two children. I hope they, their children and future generations
will see my work. I also have cousins and nephews. I also write family
history, and want to preserve more than basic facts like birth date for
the future. Poetry can be beautiful, as can fiction. I like for people
to see a poem or fiction text, and to enjoy the work.

4. What is your latest book or series? Any forthcoming books?I
have a book on contract with Books to Go Now - the book is a erotic
paranormal set in Haiti of the Colonial period. The title is Lover of
the Voodoo Priestess. I used the pen name Joan Barron.

5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book or series.and6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?The
book tells of a young French man of letters in Haiti of the old days.
He falls under the spell of a Voodoo priestess and her daughter. She
causes the death of her rival (a Frenchwoman).

The book is erotic, with relationships between a European and slave women. The paranormal aspect is the Voodoo element.

7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.I
am married to a much younger woman (23 years younger). She is from Nan
in the Highlands north of Bangkok. Nan was long an independent kingdom,
and still has its own royal family.

Friday, June 28, 2013

Kyra's star ratings:Story and characters: ****General premise and inspiration: *****Writing mechanics: ***ebook
formatting: ** (may not be the author's fault, but I found the
formatting in this ebook distracting - all dialogue in block quotes,
could not change font face)

(I received a free copy of this book for the purpose of giving an honest review.)

"Desires"
is the story of a young woman, Elean, who is the mortal manifestation
of the Goddess Brighid, and the two young men, Liam and James, who are
her best friends and protectors. Early on, in desperate circumstances,
she is forced to choose one to be her husband. I could never quite get
over the feeling that under duress she chose the wrong one, which only
added to the poignancy of the love story. The other one is still in the
picture, and they both remain devoted to her through thick and thin. The
novel is based on Irish folklore and mythology, which provides a rich
foundation for the story and which I found interesting.

The
characters are likeable and engaging, although I did find myself wanting
to smack Elean a few times (for insisting on sneaking out by herself
even when she knew from hard experience that it was dangerous and even
though the people who cared about her kept warning her not to, and also
when she stayed mad at someone for over a month just because they took
measures to make sure she did something that she desperately needed to
do.) This reaction to a character is usually when I stop reading a novel,
but I really wanted to see how the story turned out. Plus, I generally
have that reaction to teenage characters acting like teenagers (don't
get me wrong, I love teenagers, my offspring include a current teenager
and a former teenager) so I try not to let myself be prejudiced by it.

I
also didn't understand why, when one character came under an evil
influence and became a threat to Elean, the whole clan full of warriors
who were presumably loyal to her didn't stand up and defend her. They
knew this one character had become dangerous, but no one besides Elean,
her nurse, and her warrior were willing to step up and protect her.And finally, well, I hate it when that happens to a character at the end! *cry* Even though I did see it coming.

The
book is very nicely illustrated. However, I found all the dialogue
being set into block quotes distracting and disruptive to the flow of
the story. (I don't know if it was the author's choice to do it this way
or the book formatter's choice.) The book could also use a close edit
to clarify and smooth out the writing and to fix some grammar and
punctuation problems.

Overall, though, "Desires" is an emotional,
engaging novel. I think teens especially will appreciate the characters
and the love story (although there is some sexual content that may make
it inappropriate for younger teens), and anyone who's interested in
Irish folklore and mythology will enjoy the setting and story premise.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Just a few news updates. First of all, my short story collection, A Cure For Nel, and Other Stories,
is free on Amazon through June 30. This might be the last time you can
get this collection for free; I'm thinking I'll take it out of the
Select program at the end of this 90-day period and replace it with
something else. If I do this, Cure For Nel will become
available through other outlets, but I won't be able to do the free
promotions for it any more. So if you haven't downloaded it yet, now's
your chance to get it for free!

Right
now, it's at #48 in Fantasy Short Stories and Anthologies in the Kindle
Store on Amazon US. More downloads will raise the ranking, which will
give me more visibility.

But, you say, I don't have a Kindle! Never fear: if you don't have a Kindle, you can get the free Kindle reading app for your computer or device, or, since my ebooks are DRM-free, you can use the free Calibre software to convert the book into epub format for other ereaders (Nook, Kobo, Sony, Apple).

In other news, Chosen of Azara
has been approved for the Smashwords premium distribution, which means
that over the next several weeks it will become available on the
Barnes&Noble, Apple, Sony, and Kobo websites. I'll add buy links as
those go live.

And finally, if you want to try before you buy, or your budget won't allow you to buy right now, you can read Chosen of Azara for free for a limited time right here!
I'll post a chapter 2-3 times a week, with up to three chapters
available at any one time. When I get to the end, it'll come down once
the last chapters have been up for a week or so, but the free sample
will remain on the site.

Monday, June 24, 2013

Introducing another new and exciting independent author, Holly Dae!1. Tell us a little about yourself.I’m
twenty-two, a senior in college, and majoring in English. I’m the
oldest of seven children (six girls and one boy) and a little bossy
because of it. Okay, so I’m very bossy, but my family does nothing to
help me tone that down. My other hobbies are gardening, reading,
cooking, and at the moment obsessing over Teen Wolf.

2. When did you start writing, and why?I
started writing when I was like seven. The first book I ever put
together was about what happened when my second little sister was born.
After that, it was just kind of a hobby I did. Nothing serious. Then
when I was ten and my mother noticed I was writing stories a lot more
than any of my friends did and they were long stories she said, “You
really enjoy doing this? You should be a writer when you grow up.” That
was when it first occurred to me that people write all the books on the
shelves in the book stores and libraries. I’ve been practicing and
honing the craft ever since.

3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?I
write YA Fantasy and Paranormal, mostly featuring teenage female
protagonists that are of some type of African-American descent. I do so
because while I don’t really care what race or gender the characters in
books I read are if the story is good (Harry Potter is my favorite
series ever!), I wanted to read a book about a character, who, like me,
might be worried about her hair getting wet in the rain because it would
shrink into a tangled unmanageable mess, without the book being about
that character being African-American and I had a hard time finding
books like that when I was a child. For that reason I almost exclusively
write ya fantasy and ya paranormal because that give me the opportunity
to use character from very diverse backgrounds and settings, yet their
races have absolutely nothing to do with plot or the story that’s being
written.

4. What is your latest book or series? Any forthcoming books?My
latest series is a YA contemporary fantasy called The White Rose. It’s
self-published and I’m in the process of trying to gain a following for
it. Right now it has two books. The first is called The Seal of Oblivion
and its sequel is Plague of the Black Akantha. They feature Laqiya (the
q is pronounced /k/) and she’s, African-American, thirteen and able to
control the forces of nature and has to use them to keep oblivion sealed
and the antagonists from shattering the seal. I’m hoping to finish the
third book in the series, Revenge of the Illusionist, by this fall so I
can send it out to betas and get it edited for a mid to late winter
release. Right now, I’m working on Going Lucid which is a YA Paranormal
featuring Malakha, a seventeen-year-old who can cross an invisible
divide and enter Hell at will. The release date for that is tentatively
August 10th 2013. That’s very tentative.

5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book or series.So
The White Rose is a YA fantasy set in I guess it would be an alternate
contemporary world. There are a lot of familiar places mentioned in it
(The United States, Georgia, Atlanta), but the city it’s set it is
actually the fantasy version of Macon GA, where I was forced to move to
when I was a child. When I say fantasy, I mean that Roselyn City is
everything I wished Macon was when I moved there as a child. It’s in the
exact geographical location, but very modern, mildly busy, big, very
diverse, and contains most of the action of the series even though
sometimes the characters travel to Atlanta and come back. Although I
changed the name and made the city bigger, I did want it to be a little
recognizable to the city it’s based off of so it also has two or three
big fairs that come into town that really define the city much to the
bafflement of the main character.

6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?There’s
the protagonist of the White Rose series Laqiya and at first she comes
off as a bit of a spoiled, bourgeois-y rich girl, who wants nothing to
do with being anyone’s hero. In fact she hates her power to control all
the forces of nature and is very vocal about wanting to be normal and
that sometimes annoys the people around her. But her most redeeming
quality, and the quality I like most about her, is when she finally does
set her mind to do the things she knows she has to, but has been
running away from doing, it is very hard to deter her from doing it. She
has a good heart. The problem is she’s thirteen.

Then there’s
my favorite character of the series so far, and that’s one of Laqiya’s
best friends, Sakura. She’s part Japanese-American and part
African-American and she’s always very whiny and scared. The thing that I
like about her most though is that when it comes time to face her
fears, she doesn’t run away. In fact, she’s probably the bravest
character I’ve written.

7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.I’m
really into anime, especially the magical girl genre, and I always try
to find a way to tip my hat to the genre in my books. For instance,
there’s this scene in The Seal of Oblivion where the antagonist manages
to summon oblivion and when she does the characters draw attention to
the fact that there are no fancy words, fancy movements, or special
items to do it, which is a direct contrast to the bright colorful
transformations and power up sequences and rituals in magical girl
anime. So there are a lot of things that inspire The White Rose series
that come from magical girl anime, but without all the theatrics and
tropes. The books wouldn’t have been the same without my enjoyment of
magical girl anime.

8. Blog/site link, and where your book is available.My blog is thesealofoblivion.wordpress.com where you can find more info on my books and excerpts from the books I’m working on.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name?I
am Sajur Golu. "Golu" is a title signifying that I am a high priest
dedicated to the service of a Source in the Madrinan Empire. Ordinary
priests are also known as golus, but they are not entitled to bear the
title as part of their name.

2. How old are you?Only petty-minded people allow themselves to be limited by such a thing as numbers.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?I am descended from the Old Madrin nobility, a people superior in courage and intellect who gave rise to the Madrinan Empire.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?I don't see why something like that should be important enough to bother remembering.

5. What is your occupation?I
am the High Priest of Source Dar, the Source on which is founded the
capital of the Madrinan Empire and the most powerful Source in the
Empire. I am also chief advisor to Dansat, the ruler of the Madrinan
Empire and, should something happen to him and his older son the Crown
Prince, I fully expect to be the Regent in his younger son's place.

6. What are your best and worst qualities?I
possess extraordinary intelligence and a bold and fearless vision of
the future. I am also gifted with a keen perception of others' thoughts
and emotions, and with the ability to persuade others to do my bidding.
As well, I have a matchless ability to take in Source-power and to use
it, and the courage to go beyond the limitations that are imposed by the
small-minded.

My worst quality? I would say that I regret not
having the ability to actually read minds. I am also not as young as I
used to be, and aging is somewhat of an inconvenience to one with my
drive and ambition.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?Golus
in the Madrinan Empire are generally expected to remain celibate. A
rather petty limitation, adhered to by those who are too conventional to
fully explore all the avenues by which power can be gained and
experienced. I have rather unique and sophisticated tastes in this area,
unconstrained by petty ideas of morality or romance, and I savor the
times when I can find a participant for my activities who has the proper
attitude towards them.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?There
are ways of using Source-power that most workers of magic would not
dream of or dare to use if they did know of them. My research in this
area is always intriguing and fulfilling.

9. What is your greatest fear?Why should I fear anything?

Although,
I will admit, it would be a rather annoying inconvenience should those
on the Imperial council who are petty-minded enough to not share my
grand vision and to object to some of my methods and objectives persuade
Dansat that I should be removed from my current positions.

10. What is your most treasured possession?Power
- both magical power, and power over the minds and hearts of men - is
what gives life meaning. Life can only be experienced to its fullest through the exercise of power.

Friday, June 21, 2013

And, yay, Chosen of Azara is now live on Amazon and Smashwords!
The next step is to do the paperback version; that should be available
in a few weeks. In the meantime, the files will go through the approval
process on Smashwords for expanded distribution and once that's done the
book will become available for sale at Barnes&Noble, Sony, Apple,
and Kobo. Watch for buy links as the book goes live on those sites.

I finished the proofread on Chosen of Azara
yesterday, and the formatting is (so far; knock on wood) going well.
Yesterday afternoon and evening and this morning I got done what it took
me a week to do last time. It helps that I have my stylesheet and
templates already set up - I'm using the same stylesheet for each book
so that my books will have a consistent look and feel to them - and that
I decided not to try wrestling with constructing the entire ebook by
hand (see "command-line programs are not my friend" under this post).
Last time, I wrote out a general workflow, which is making this easier,
but this time I'm making sure to write down all the tips, tricks, and
shortcuts that will make the formatting go even faster on future books.
Not making any promises, but I anticipate Chosen of Azara going live on Amazon by early next week, with other stores to follow as I get those formats done.

In the meantime, if you're anxious to get a peek at Chosen of Azara, or want to read some before you decide if you want to buy it, you can read a sample here on my site.
It consists of the first scene or two from each of the three sections
of the book (instead of just the first 10-20% which is what you get when
you download the free sample from ebook stores), with spoilery bits
removed. Check it out, and meet Juzeva, Sevry and Lucie!

I'll make an official announcement when Chosen of Azara becomes available for purchase, and will add buy links as they go live. Stay tuned!

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

1. Tell us a little about yourself.
I am a California native and have lived here my whole life. I love to
research myths & legends from around the world, which is where I get
the ideas for most of my stories. I am a registered veterinary
technician and wildlife rehabilitator, preferring to work with wildlife
and exotics. I think I can safely say that I have been bitten or
scratched by more species of animals than anyone I know. I think it also
a safe bet to say that I have had more different species of animals
living in my home than most people. My children have experienced living
with everything from opossum, birds of prey and coyotes to scorpions,
hissing cockroaches and bird-eating spiders. I guess it’s no wonder none
of them went into veterinary medicine.2. When did you start writing, and why?
I was always making up imaginary stories as a kid, but I didn’t really
get the writing bug until I was in college. My college English teacher
(who was actually the Psychology professor) asked us to write five pages
in the format of a romance novel. I had been reading romance novels for
quite a while and couldn’t wait to see the “A” on my paper. When it was
graded, he returned it with a note saying “No man could make love all
night after being shot in the shoulder.” Well…obviously the man had
never picked up romance novel in his life. He must have been projecting
his inadequate manly prowess onto my buff and totally hot character (who
was only winged by the bullet). I received a “C” on the paper, but I
was hooked on writing. While doing genealogy research I came across a
bulletin board called “Clancy’s Pub” for those with Irish roots. Out of
shear boredom one night I wrote a post about coming into the pub and
finding it empty, but having the feeling I was being watched. Other
like-minded people responded to the post in such a way that an impromptu
adventure story was launched. We did quite a few after that, but
“Desires (A Legacy Novel) is my first book in print.3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?
I like to write fantasy and paranormal fiction with my core ideas
coming from the myths & legends I research. Currently, my books are
in the young adult category, but that might not always be the case. I
just happen to read a lot of YA, so that is the path I chose to follow
with the Legacy series. I have also been asked to write a children’s
book about a pony that is given to family therapist that uses the horses
to work with children. Only this little pony that was raised with
long-horned cattle and doesn’t really know she is a horse. She finds it
hard to fit in the herd of horses that are a part of the program. The
proceeds from the sale will go to therapy horse programs. I think the
part I like most in my writing process is when the ideas come to me. It
is like watching a DVD on the big screen; everything just rolls through
my head like a movie.4. What is your latest book or series? Any forthcoming books?
My current book is “Desires (A Legacy Novel), which is the first book
in the series. Fantasy artist, Julie Fain designed the cover and the
Celtic art in the interior is by renowned Celtic artist, Jen Delyth. I
am currently writing “Malevolence” which will be the second book with
“Sacrifices” being the final book. There may be a novella between books
two and three. Julie and Jen will continue with their art in the series,
plus they will be joined by fantasy artist, Delight Prescott-Spall to
bring a unique touch to the books’ interiors. Also to be released this
year (I hope) will be a book or series based off of a Native American
legend from the Pacific northwest and, of course, the children’s book.5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book or series.
Most of “Desires” takes place in the Glens of Antrim in Northern
Ireland during the early Iron Age. The village of “Ballybog” was created
by a warrior that was given the task of protecting the heir of the
Goddess Brighid. He and his mercenaries travelled into the mostly
uninhabitable bog lands to raise their families in safety. The men know
the leader of their clan has been entrusted with the guarding of an
Otherworldly treasure, they just don’t know it is his wife. There are
also glimpses into Tara and the Otherworld.6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?
Eléan – Her maternal bloodline carries a spark of the Goddess
Brighid’s soul. They were created to keep the Goddess in the hearts of
mortals and are considered her daughters.
Liam and James – Warriors and adopted brothers, their father is the
best friend of the King (Elena’s father). The three of them have a
special bond.
Morrigan – the Goddess uncontrollable lust and killing rage. She has
decided the best way to get even with Dagda over a perceived insult is
to kill his daughter Brighid. But she cannot do that out-right, so she
directs her rage at Brighid’s heirs in the Mortal realm and their
warriors.
Greagoir – born to peasant parents, he just knew it was a mistake. When
he dreams about controlling a powerful goddess from the Otherworld to
get all he wants, Greagoir is sure it is the answer to his prayers. Like
they say…”Magic always comes with a price.”7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.
I do my best writing when the weather is stormy, but I live in the
center of sunny California. My writing routine includes putting a
fireplace DVD on the TV in my office, as thunderstorm CD on the
computer, a pot of tea on my desk, and I darken the room and light all
the candles…instant winter even when it is 110 outside.

Saturday, June 15, 2013

So,
it's Father's Day. I never know what to get my dad for Father's Day.
Anything he doesn't already have, either I can't afford it, or he either
goes out and gets it himself or just doesn't want it. I always send my
mom flowers for Mother's Day, but my dad's not really a flowers kind of
guy. So what do you give the dad who has everything? A blog post
dedicated to him, of course!

Here are things I learned from
my dad (that's him in his college days in the picture), and ways he
influenced me, to make me what I am today (and I consider what I am
today to be a good thing!):

1. He and my mom always emphasized education and had high expectations for me
and my three siblings. These high expectations were kind of hard to
deal with sometimes, but it became ingrained in me that I'm capable of
excellence if I work at it. I haven't always been very good at the whole
work ethic thing, but when I do find something I want to work hard at,
it's there.

2. He read "The Hobbit" out loud to us
when we were little kids, along with other books - I seem to recall "The
Wind in the Willows," and definitely "A Christmas Carol." He and my mom
also gave me a box set of the Earthsea Trilogy when I was 11 or 12
years old (either for my birthday or for Christmas, I don't remember.)
This launched my love of fantasy and imaginative literature at an early
age and let me know that it's ok to explore the imagination and to
invent worlds and things that don't exist in the "real world."

3.
Although he made a career as a research physicist and physics
professor, he has always worked with his hands. He grew up working as a
carpenter with his father and grandfather, and has continued to do
carpentry along with vegetable gardening and yardwork through his adult
life. That taught me that manual labor is as fulfilling and worthwhile
as work that's done with the mind, and any kind of work done honestly
and to the best of your ability is something to be proud of.

4.
He did also teach me - I'm not sure if this was inadvertant or not -
that some jobs just aren't worth doing and that you want to do whatever
it takes to make sure those kinds of jobs are not your only option. When
I was 11 or 12 he strongly "encouraged" (I recall it as "forced" but my
memory might not be correct on that) me to get a paper route. The
old-fashioned kind, where the kid rode around on a bike tossing papers
onto driveways and then knocking on strangers' doors once a month to
collect the money. For the afternoon paper. In Phoenix, Arizona. In the
summer. I hated it. I delivered papers for two or three years and hated
every minute of it. And the pay worked out to maybe pennies per hour.
It's worth it to do whatever you have to do to learn and acquire skills
so that a crappy job like that isn't your only option. (Sometimes you
have to take whatever you can get in order to pay the bills, but you
want to be able to move to something better if the opportunity comes
along.)

5. He's very musical (so is my mom; they first got
to know each other in their high school pep band; not sure how my mom,
being a pianist, fit into that, but that's what happened) and music was
important in our home. When I was in 5th grade, he "encouraged" (there's
that word again) me to take up the flute. I enjoyed music and got
pretty serious about it, with the result that I majored in music in
college and that's how I met my wonderful husband. So, thanks for that,
Dad :-D

6. Even after he retired from his position
as a professor, he still remains a scientist and a teacher, with the
motto, "You retire from what you do, not from what you are." Because of
this, I'm able to think of myself as a writer, even if I don't make any
money at it (which isn't the case, I am making some money, not a lot so
far but some) and even if some external agency or organization doesn't
validate me with that title.

7. There's a saying
that the best thing a man can do for his children is to love their
mother, and my dad embodies this. He and my mom have been together as
friends, sweethearts, and husband and wife for probably sixty years now.
Because of this (and because of my own marriage), I believe in
true love and happily ever after, and that's why I write about those
things. Some writers say that happily ever after is unrealistic - it
doesn't work that way in love or in life. Yeah, life is hard, there are
always going to be challenges, and in my books, even when the hero and
heroine end up happily together they still face challenges and
difficulties. But challenges are better faced with your best friend,
lover, and sweetheart at your side, and you come out stronger at the end
for going through them together.

8. When it comes to
politics, my dad and I disagree probably 95% of the time (the one thing
we seem to agree on consistently is on having no desire to belong to a
political party). From my dad, I've learned that someone can disagree
with you and still be a good person.

9. My dad gave me my first computer as a combination First Mother's Day/Grad School Graduation
gift in 1989. It was one of those where you had to start it up by
inserting a 5-inch floppy with the OS on it. When I decided to try my
hand at writing novels some months later, I quickly discovered how much
easier it is to write stuff on a computer than by hand or on a
typewriter. I still have my original writing from that old computer,
transferred from disk type to disk type and format to format at least
five or six times since then. Some pretty darn good ideas, too,
including my first two complete novels which one day I will revise and
release. Urdaisunia was initially written on that old computer, too.

10.
My dad's faith has always been an inspiration and example to me. He's a
scientist, and probably the most intelligent person I know, and he's
living proof that reason and intelligence and deep, devout faith are
perfectly compatible - not just that, but they build on and increase
each other. I wandered a bit for some years in my early adulthood, but I
eventually came to fully embrace the beliefs and faith that he and my
mom taught us and raised us in, and that's a gift as great as any other he's ever given me.

Happy Father's Day, Dad. Love you!(And here's one more picture of him, doing science stuff. He's the one on the right.)

Thursday, June 13, 2013

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name? My name is Lucie Barille. I don't think there's anything really special about it, but I like it.

2. How old are you?I just turned 20.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?My
father is Baron Robart Barille. I love him a lot, and he spoils me. My
mother, Rinata, died when I was 11. I still miss her every day. Her
mother, my Grandmama Lillia, lives with us. She came to help my mother
take care of me when I was little, because my mother was sick for a long
time, and she stayed with us after my mother died. So I wouldn't be
alone in a house full of bullheaded men, she says. I'm very close to
her. I also have two older brothers, Pavel and Petir. They're both
really annoying, but I do love them. Even though I wish they weren't
quite so annoying.

My great-grandmother Varena, Grandmama
Lillia's mother, had a really interesting story. She was a wandering
foreign woman with a baby daughter who took shelter at Meadowlook one
winter, and the Baron there, Baron Arnaud Ellande, fell in love with her
and married her. I think that's so romantic! He also adopted my
grandmama, and raised her as his own. I never knew him, he died about
ten years before I was born, but I think every man should be like him.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?My
first kiss was with my fiance, Estefan. I liked it, of course.
Although... It wasn't quite what I was expecting. It wasn't really even
on my mouth, more on my cheek, you know? He tries to be discreet, but
I've seen how he kisses other girls, like the maids, and it wasn't
anything like that. I suppose it wouldn't really be proper for him to
kiss me like that until after we're married. (To be fair, Estefan isn't
the only one who kisses the maids and kitchen girls, my brothers do it
too. Estefan's mother, Lady Alise, says all men do that sort of thing.)

5. What is your occupation?I'm
the daughter of a Baron, and since my mother is no longer living I help
my father manage his household. When I'm married I'll be a Baroness,
the Lady of Hart's Leap, which means I'll be busy managing Estefan's
household and raising our children. I can't wait! :)

6. What are your best and worst qualities?Well,
I sing well, and I play the lute and the harpsichord, and I'm very good
at gathering herbs for the healer in the village, and I'm kind and
cheerful. And my hair - does my hair count as a good quality?

On
the bad side, I never paid very much attention in my lessons, and my
brothers think I'm silly but they're even sillier so what do they know?
And Lady Alise, my future mother-in-law, thinks I'm eccentric because I
like to be outdoors a lot. And my nose and bosom freckle in the sun.
Which I guess wouldn't be a problem if I didn't spend so much time
outside. But that's okay, I'd rather be outside.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?My
fiance Estefan is wonderful, of course. He's very handsome, and strong
and manly, and has a fine voice, though I do wish he had better taste in
songs. And his house, Hart's Leap, is one of the most modern and
beautiful houses in the Lower Districts of Ceryria. I'm very lucky that
he wanted to marry me.

Though, I suppose I do wish he paid more
attention to me and less to the housemaids. And I wish he wasn't always
telling me what to do and what not to do. Except for those things,
though, he's practically almost perfect.

Except sometimes I wish
he was more like... Well, never mind that. And also a little more like
my step-great-grandfather. But really, I'm very lucky to be engaged to
him.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?I
love to go walking through the woods near my father's house. There's
just something magical about them, and I feel like that's where I belong
more than anywhere else. I especially like it when -- um, never mind
that, too. Estefan doesn't think it's proper for me to go wandering
around the forest, especially by myself, and I promised him I'd give it
up after we're married, but until then, as long as my father doesn't
forbid it - and he almost always lets me have my own way - I'll keep
doing it for as long as I can.

9. What is your greatest fear?My
greatest fear? I don't know. Maybe that my Grandmama will die? She's
old and in poor health, but I don't want to lose her. Also that Estefan
might decide he doesn't want to marry me after all.

10. What is your most treasured possession?I
have this crystal pendant on a silver chain that my mother gave me when
I turned 5. I guess that's awfully young for a gift like that, but my
mother told me that it was a treasure that belonged to my
great-grandmother Varena and that I must take the very best care of it,
so I've always been very careful with it. I don't know what's special
about it besides the fact that it belonged to my great-grandmother, but
my mother gave it to me and it's one of the things that remind me of her
the most.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

1. Tell us a little about yourself:I’m
married to a wonderful wife, have 2 fantastic children, both of whom
have left home; my son courting and my daughter married with 3 beautiful
children. I am a qualified aircraft engineer having trained and served
in the Royal Air Force, but now work full time as a finance officer in
local government. I love walking, preferably in the spring and autumn,
camping, and gardening, (I just wish I had one large enough to do
something in). I have a passion for genealogy, reading and of course,
writing; I enjoy watching classic British sitcoms, crime dramas such as
Agatha Christie, Lewis and Midsomer Murders, and have a large collection
of films of all genres. Finding time to do everything I would like is
hard, so it often requires a careful balancing act, although some things
do get neglected at times, such as genealogy.2. When did you start writing, and why?I
first started writing back in 1998 when I was off work following a back
injury. Not being able to do much physically, including walking and
driving, I thought I would pass some of my time away by writing a story.
I did not expect to write much, but once I had started, the story just
seemed to flow and I was hooked.

3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?My
first version of my series of ‘The Guardians’ novels actually started
off as science fiction with a slight supernatural element, but I was not
happy with the finished manuscripts. So I put these aside to write in
my favoured genre, Fantasy, having always preferred reading fantasy
novels to science fiction. However, after having set aside my writing
for several years to focus on genealogy, I decided to rewrite ‘The
Guardians’ series into a Fantasy set in the distant future.

I
suppose I would have to say I enjoy everything about what I write, from
developing the characters, to evolving the level of magic involved in
the story. I just love writing, and the genres of Fantasy and Science
Fiction can give your imagination that little more freedom to explore
beyond the accepted laws of science.

4. What is your latest book? Any forthcoming books?My
latest book was published as an eBook back in January 2013, ‘A Guardian
Reborn’, the third book in the series ‘The Guardians’, however, I have
also just completed a thorough revision of the first book in the series,
‘Path to Vengeance’, which I feel brings it more up to the level of
books two and three.

I will soon be starting the rewrite of
books four and five in the series, with a hope to publishing the book
four later this year and book five early in 2014. I am also working on
some short stories that will fit in and around ‘The Guardians’ series of
novels. When all of these are completed, I will commence working on my
fantasy epic series “The Chronicles of Ferantiana”.

5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book:The
third book focuses primarily on the main character, Grogaan, and the
story is set on several worlds and sectors of space, each having an
important and profound effect on him and his future. The Guardians’
series is set in the distant future, where travel between worlds is at
the speed of light, guns have been replaced by lasers, but human nature
is still volatile and unpredictable. Magic has played a major part in
shaping society across the galaxy, often with catastrophic effect. The
galaxy is divided into four quadrants; the Gaashox, where the first book
is set; the Ladorran, which features prominently in books 2 and 3; the
Yeasson, which features in books 4 and 5, and avoided by most space
farers and merchants of the Ladorran quadrant; the Neaffrox, only
mentioned.

6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?Grogaan
Learman, one of the main characters, the son of a renowned fighter
pilot, adept in magic, and destined to achieve great things. I like
Grogaan for several reasons; he has an inner strength that helps him
cope with everything destiny throws at him; he cares for his friends and
puts as much importance on their welfare as his own.

Ellarna
Rayshon, the eldest daughter of a Senator, intelligent and a gifted
diplomat, who discovers she is adept in magic. She is another strong
character with a kind heart, and puts the needs of others far above her
own.

Pakrowask and Kopranton, both former Senators of their
homeworld of Krelath, now Imperial Governors of the Hebradon Empire and
powerful sorcerer’s. Although initially deceived, they show a
surprising level of restrain in their dealings with magic and their
Empresses.

General Sorann Taggash, Guardian Master, and hero of
the ‘Confederation of Star System’s. Prone to rushing in to situations
without thinking and getting into trouble, but underneath the appearance
of immaturity, he bears surprising strength of character and
compassion.

7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.Sorry,
can’t think of any fun facts about me, and there aren’t any about my
books. [Kyra sez: the books themselves are fun enough!]

Monday, June 10, 2013

Meet Sevry, from Chosen of Azara
(sorry, this one's kind of depressing) (and no, that's not him on the
cover either) (remember, these are of the character as they are at the
beginning of the book, or, in this case, their story arc) (enough
asides; on with the interview):

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name?My name is Sevros, but when I was little my parents nicknamed me Sevry, and it stuck. That's what I've been called ever since.

2. How old are you?I am 23 years old.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?My
grandmother was Queen Ilvana, queen of Savaru. My aunt Juzeva was
married off to the Crown Prince of the Madrinan Empire. I also had a
grandfather, mother and father, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles
and cousins; we were a large and loving family, and I was fortunate to
have that for a few short years. They're all dead now. I'm the only one
left. I definitely do not like that.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?I've been too busy trying to stay alive and fighting a war for the last twenty years to kiss anyone.

5. What is your occupation?Nominally,
I'm the king of Savaru, but my country is completely overrun by the
enemy and all my people are dead except for me. So my list of
responsibilities is pretty short - mainly, kill as many Madrinans as I
can before they kill me.

6. What are your best and worst qualities?I
had a talent for music when I was a boy. I don't know what's happened
to that - I haven't felt much like making music in a long time.

My worst quality is that I was too weak to save what was left of my people.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?Alive would be good. But it seems I'm out of luck there.

If things were different... I'd like a woman who loved music, who could sing to me and with me.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?Like
I said, I used to love to sing and make up songs and stories. Now, life
is just a matter of trying to stay alive even though death would be
preferable to what passes for life now.

9. What is your greatest fear?My
country has been conquered by the Madrinan Empire, all my people are
dead except for me - the last few insisted on dying to protect me, their
king, which was pointless because I'm also going to be dead within the
hour. So there isn't really anything left to be afraid of except that
I'll die without taking a handful of Madrinans into death with me.

10. What is your most treasured possession?The
song that used to be my mother's favorite. I still remember it. If I
knew that that one song would survive my death and the destruction of my
people, then I would die a little more content.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Another character interview: introducing Juzeva from Chosen of Azara. (no, she isn't the young lady on the book cover.)

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name?My name is Juzeva. It's a Savarunan name meaning "promise."

2. How old are you?I am 20 years old.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?My
mother, Ilvana, is the Queen of Savaru. My father, Ezdar, her consort,
is also the High Priest of the Source Yizu. I have four elder brothers,
who all have wives and children.

Though I love my family, of
course, and I honor my parents for giving me birth, the person - or
being, I suppose, since a Source is not a person - I am closest to, who
is my true family, is Source Azara. I was born Chosen - that is,
perfectly attuned to Azara's power. I need her power in order to live,
and I am closer to her than I could ever be to anyone or anything else.

I
do have a good friend, though. My dear servant Ysa stood very much in
the place of a mother to me when I first came to the Convent, when I was
eight, and she remains my closest human friend and confidante.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?As
a Daughter of Azara, vowed to the service of Azara, I am sworn to
celibacy. (Not all Sources require those in their service to remain
celibate; my father, for example, is High Priest of a Source and is also
consort to my mother.) I entered Azara's service when I was eight years
old; therefore I have never kissed a man, other than, of course, my
father and brothers in the manner of family members.

I don't mind
the requirement of celibacy. Azara is my life; her service, her magic,
the love I feel from her, are all I need. I do not feel that I am
missing out on anything by not marrying or having children.

5. What is your occupation?As
Chosen of Source Azara, I am the High Priestess of Azara. My primary
responsibilities are to lead the rituals of worship, assist those who
wish to draw upon Azara's power in order to work magic, and convey
Azara's word to those who worship or are dedicated to her or who desire
guidance from her. I hesitate to use the word "responsibilities;" that
makes what I do sound like a chore or an obligation. Serving Azara is my
greatest joy; I cannot think of anything I would rather do.

6. What are your best and worst qualities?My
best quality? I have no wish to sound vain, but I believe my best
quality is my desire to serve Azara and, through her, to help the people
of Savaru. I am, after all, the daughter of their Queen, and they are
my people. My worst quality... Again I do not wish to boast, but Azara
has never given me reason to feel that my character is lacking in any
way.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?As I said before, I am sworn to celibacy in Azara's service, and I have no regrets about living my life in that manner.

If for some reason I were to marry, though, I would like a husband who is kind.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?I
love to climb down the path and walk out onto the rocks in the cove
where Azara dwells, and stand among the waves and speak with her.

9. What is your greatest fear?That someday, for some reason, I will be forced to leave Azara.

10. What is your most treasured possession?That is easy - my connection to Azara as her Chosen.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Introducing Alexandra Butcher, whose book The Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles, Book 1 I reviewed in the last post.

1. Tell us a little about yourself.I
am a British author with a variety of other interests, including
nature, history, the theatre, gaming and, of course, reading. I live in
the south-west of Britain with an assortment of pets, plants and books.

2. When did you start writing, and why?I
suppose at school, I always enjoyed reading and English Literature and
certainly at primary school/middle school age I would get asked to write
poetry or short prose for summer events. Always an imaginative person I
would often imagine stories or what is now called ‘fan-fic’ from the
books I read. More seriously I suppose the fan-fic progressed into more
than just a few pages and the poetry continued, albeit darker. Running
and playing RPG games, including Warhammer, Vampire and Star Wars meant
I often had to write interesting adventures, and even as a player I
often used to come up with complex backgrounds. Yes I am a geek, and
proud of it.Why? That is more of a difficult
question. If I am honest probably as escapism as I was often quite
unhappy at school and would both read and write to lose myself in new
and exciting worlds. All my family like books, my sister is a teacher of
English and Drama and my late grandmother was a researcher of local
history and had a couple of books published.

3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?I
write poetry, as I mentioned, but not often now and most of it will
never see the light of day. I do have a couple published in an anthology
and I recently wrote a summer based poem which will feature in a summer
charity anthology, along with a short fantasy story. My main genres,
however, are dark fantasy/fantasy romance and erotica.I love to create the worlds and the adventures, it is very exciting to be able to see the story flow.

4. What is your latest book? Any forthcoming books?Can
I mention both? The first is the ‘Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles –
Book I’, which was published just over a year ago and I have just
released ‘The Shining Citadel – The Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles
Book II’ which was released just a few weeks ago. I also, as I
mentioned, have a short fantasy story and some poetry in ‘A Splendid
Salmagundi’. I am just about to start writing Book III of the Chronicles
and there will also be some short stories.

5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book.The
books are set in the world of Erana, a dark medieval-style fantasy
world. There are humans, half-elves and elves in Book I and Book II
introduces trolls and fae. Erana is not a nice place to live, especially
for those of the elven race. Elves are un-free, with no rights, no
recourse to justice and often kept as slaves or servants, they are
unable to move around freely and many are forced to live in utter
poverty. Those who live in their ancestral home – the Shimmering Forest –
do so in hiding ever afraid the slavers will come. The land is run by
the Order of Witch-Hunters, a brutal and largely corrupt organisation
who maintain their power through ignorance, fear and violence. Magic is
also illegal. Mages are feared, and anyone who has magic in one form or
another must hide it or risk a visit by the Order of Witch-Hunters. The
humans tend to be unkind to the elves. The nobility too are often
corrupt and indifferent. Life is hard for the poor and most people are
too busy surviving to dare to question the status quo, or in some cases
it suits them.

In Book II we are introduced to the trolls –
which are not creatures who live under bridges and menace travellers.
These trolls are a noble race; strong, and clever but rather insular.
They too have magic but it is limited, they are shape-shifters and
seers. We also meet the fae, believed to have been banished and nasty –
think emotional-vampire mages who use the fear and turmoil of others to
enhance their spells. Book II reveals quite a lot more lore of the
world, the history of the darkness and of Dii and Archos. More will be
revealed later on.

6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?Book
I features Dii, an elven sorceress and former slave, who runs away from
her master’s house in fear of her life. Fleeing into this dark
threatening world she must survive and find a way to be free. She is
also passionate and loving and to a great extent she needs to be looked
after, she is the more submissive of the two mages. She does learn to be
a little more dominate but she likes to please, this is a result of her
slavery. She is also extremely clever and she finds wonder and joy in
many things, such as snowfall, being allowed to read what she wishes and
the sheer beauty of the natural world. She is wary of people.

Then
there is Archos, a mysterious nobleman and powerful mage who befriends
her. Those two have quite the passionate relationship! Archos is
powerful, rich, handsome and dangerous but he can be moved to acts of
great kindness and bravery, including at the risk of his own life and
his reputation. Archos is a lot of fun, he is a real anti-hero. He
fights for the good team but he doesn’t always use pleasant means to
achieve his ends. He is also quite mysterious and dark. He is certainly
not how he appears. He does have a kind side, his relationship with Dii
is very touching and to his friends he is loyal and generous, but to his
enemies he is ruthless.

The other main characters are Olek, a
half-elven thief and the young elven huntress and scout Ozena, whose
sister is taken by slavers. Ozena is the young rather naïve and virginal
girl in book I. Raised in a small elven village she knows next to
nothing about the world of humans but she is brave in her own way and
she is stubborn, if sometimes impulsive. She does not wish to ask the
humans for help but she knows she must. She does have a bossy streak
though.

Book II has these four, plus Marden who is a human
warrior and has other secrets, Th’alia an elven scholar and Talfor a
shape-shifting trollish warrior.

What do I like about them? Dii
is kind and gentle, despite her terrible history, and as the stories
progress she becomes more confident and more sure of her magic and
starts to become a formidable mage in her own right in Book II. Olek is
amusing. He loves to eat and he has a good sense of humour but again he
knows what is needed to be done and he does not shirk from it. He is
very worldly, which is surprising for an elf or half elf. He is also
very confident, another unusual trait for an elf. Marden is interesting
and he develops a lot as a character and a man in book II. Archos is
deliciously nasty when he needs to be but he is also quite amusing. He
has an air that he knows more than others, but this is often the case.
He does. He can be arrogant but in some ways he has the right to it.

7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.I am frightened of clowns.

8. Blog/site link, and where your book is available.‘The
Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles – Book I’ is available as an e-book
on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, I-books and Diesel and also as a
paperback on Amazon. ‘The Shining Citadel’ is available on Amazon only
at the moment. The paperback will appear shortly (as at early June) and
will appear on the other sites when the KDP Select term expires.

Friday, June 7, 2013

A
long time ago, I thought it was unfair that in the fantasy books I
read, wizards never got to have personal lives. Kings and princes and
ordinary village guys and everyone else, yes, but not wizards. "The
Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles" certainly makes up for that.

Aside
from the sex scenes (which are not frequent, but are very explicit,
occasionally bordering on kinky), The Light Beyond the Storm is an
intriguing tale of a world where elves and mages are oppressed, an elf
woman, Dii, who decides to fight for her freedom, and the powerful human
mage, Archos, who assists her and becomes a force for helping elves and
other oppressed people against the cruel, decadent nobility and the
ruthless Order of Witch Hunters. It also involves two very sweet love
stories.

Dii, who starts out the novel, kind of fades into the
background after Archos comes on the scene, but Archos is such a
seriously cool character that I didn't mind too much, though I do like
to see the female character take a more active role. Even so, it's clear
that Dii is a big motivation for everything Archos does. And, to be
fair, with Dii being a female elf mage, she has virtually no freedom or
ability to act independently in this world. Archos is awesome -
handsome, powerful, scary when he's doing his really cool magic,
completely badass and ruthless when he has to be, but also with a very
tender side, and a genuinely good heart when it comes to helping the
unfortunate and oppressed. I don't know if it's kind of contradictory to
say this of a book with such graphic sexual content, but it's
refreshing to read a fantasy novel with a clear moral compass, where the
good people are strong, smart, and admirable, instead of being weak,
stupid, and pathetic as is so common in current "dark" or "gritty"
fantasy (*coughgrrmartincough*). I enjoyed the other characters, but
Archos especially stands out.

The world is painted in vivid
detail, from ancient magic caves to fields and forests to the dark and
dangerous city. I would have liked to know more about why elves are so
oppressed, how they came to be treated as little more than property to
be used and abused, and what gives the Order of Witch Hunters so much
power. The background of the elves is hinted at a little bit late in the
book; I get the feeling we'll learn more about that in the next book.

The book could use a careful edit to smooth out some long, tangled sentences and tidy up the punctuation.

For
those who prefer not to read such graphic content, I would say that
this book can still be enjoyed even if you skim over or skip the sex
scenes. Also, there are a number of rapes that occur in the book, but
none of them are described in detail.

Overall, I found myself
caught up in wanting to see if Dii could keep her new-found freedom and
if Archos could help the captured, enslaved elves, and in the two
romances. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens in the next
book.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Here's the companion piece to the last post about Rashali, an interview with Prince Eruz from Urdaisunia.

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name?
My
name is Eruzasharbat. I'm commonly called Eruz; it's becoming customary
among younger Sazars to shorten our names. Some older Sazars think that
makes our names too similar to Urdai names, but it also makes them
easier to say.

2. How old are you?
I am 25 years old.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?
My
father is Nezudanasag, King of Urdaisunia. My mother, his First Wife,
is dead. I have a younger twin brother, Hazramatanarg, and an older
brother, Teshtarganazad. Teshtarg's mother was one of our father's
lesser wives; that's why he isn't heir to the throne. I also have a
number of sisters. My wives are Nishanara (my First Wife), Gutrarina,
and Birsaguna, and I have a two-year-old daughter, Mizalilu, by Gutra.

My
father and brothers... Let's just say we don't see eye-to-eye on the
best way to rule Urdaisunia and deal with the Urdai people. I think
their view that it's appropriate and necessary to rule the Urdai with a
heavy hand is short-sighted and dangerous, not to mention wrong for its
own sake. My brothers would each love to take my place as heir, and I
feel like my father is always watching me for an excuse to disinherit
me. My father's brother Sumatriganaz, feels more the way I do, but I'm
not sure if I can count on him to back me up in a confrontation with my
father.

As for my wives, they're charming and attractive, but I
never seem to be quite able to please them. Especially Nisha - we've
been married for five years and I've yet to give her a child.

My daughter Mizalilu is the light of my life. She's quite perfect in every way, of course, the most beautiful child ever born.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?
My
father contracted my first three zanira for me when I was seventeen.
Since, of course, it's improper for a man to kiss a woman who isn't
legally contracted to him as a wife or zanira, my first kiss was one of
them, though I don't remember which one. (I'll admit, though, there
might have been a kitchen girl or two before then, but my first
permissible experience of any kind with a woman would have been with one
of those zanira.) I'm sure I enjoyed it, I enjoy engaging in intimate
relations, but sometimes I wonder if duty and physical pleasure are
really all there is to it.

5. What is your occupation?
I
am the High Prince, the Heir to the throne of Urdaisunia. Besides the
general duties that go with the position, I am responsible for matters
concerning the Urdai and also the harbor city, Kubiz.

6. What are your best and worst qualities?
I
think my best quality is my willingness to look at matters objectively
and realistically and to think for myself rather than being blinded by
prejudice and tradition. Although this does cause difficulties for me
with my father.

My worst quality is that sometimes I lack the
courage to stand up for what I think is right. Besides that, allow me to
refer you to my wives. I'm sure they'd be happy to give you an
exhaustive list of my faults.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?
I
appreciate a woman who is intelligent, and who can challenge me on an
equal standing. Also, I know this sounds silly, but it would be kind of
nice to have a wife who cares about me for myself instead of just for
what I can give her. I know that isn't how things work, but it would be
nice.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?
I
enjoy riding my horse, Teshkarizaz, and spending time with my daughter.
I also like going out in disguise to gather information myself rather
than relying on agents to find out the things I want to know. It's a
relief to be able to stop being the High Prince for a while and do
something challenging and exciting. Also, the Sazars still worship Kuz,
the god of sorcerers, and he's one of my favorite gods, so he has
granted me a few small gifts which I enjoy using when I have the chance.

9. What is your greatest fear?
That
my father's oppression of the Urdai will lead to an uprising, which
would lead to bloodshed and disaster for all of us. I especially fear
that my daughter would be harmed in a rebellion. I also fear being
disinherited - not that I care so much about being King, but because
both of my brothers hate the Urdai and would be even more ruthless
towards them than my father is. I would like to see Urdaisunia peaceful
and prosperous for the sake of all who live there, and especially for
the sake of my daughter and any other children I might have.

Here's
another fun thing I thought of to have on the blog: character
interviews! I always enjoy reading these on other blogs about characters
I like, so I decided to give it a try. Non-spoilery - these interviews
are of the characters as they are at the beginning of the book. Have
more questions for the characters? Leave them in the comments :)

1. What is your full name? Is there anything significant about your name?
My name is Rashali. It's just an ordinary Urdai name. I've heard that people from other lands have names for their families, but we Urdai don't have that custom.

2. How old are you?I'm
not really sure. With things being so difficult, once someone survives
to adulthood, their age doesn't really matter. I think I'm about 22
years old.

3. Tell us about your family. What do you like and not like about them?Most
of my family, including my parents, most of my siblings, and my husband
and daughter, are dead. Of course, I don't like that. My sister Kinna
is still alive, and a few of her children. I live with them and help
care for them. Kinna is older than me, but I feel like I'm the one who
is stronger, and who looks after her. That's all right, it keeps me busy
and gives me something to do, to keep my mind off of Tigun and Lalana
being gone, and keeps me from getting too lonely.

4. Who was your first kiss, and what did you think of it?*blushes*
My first kiss was Tigun. He had come to our village from a village far
away, on the Tabra River. He was so handsome, and the first person I'd
ever met who wasn't from Moon Bend or one of the villages nearby. I
don't know why he chose me - I'm told I'm not very pretty, and that I'm
far too serious - but he did, and he kissed me, and I liked it enough
to marry him.

5. What is your occupation?
I'm
a widow, a childless mother, a sister, an aunt. I care for my surviving
family members, and for others in the village who need me. I'm also a
Scorpion, a rebel against the Sazars, who conquered my country three
generations ago. My greatest dream is to see the Sazars driven out of
Urdaisunia and destroyed.

6. What are your best and worst qualities?My
best qualities are that I'm loyal and hard-working, and I think about
things instead of taking them for granted. My worst quality is, I wish I
wasn't so weak that sometimes my emotions, my feelings, are hard to
live with. I wish sometimes I could just stop feeling anything.

7. What quality do you value most in a romantic partner?I want a man who cherishes me and respects me, and who is kind and loyal and intelligent. A man like Tigun. I don't know if there are any more men like him.

8. What is your favorite thing to do?I
used to love to... spend time being close to my husband, and also
playing with my daughter. I can't do those any more. There isn't
anything I really like to do now, except think about and plan for the
day when my people can regain their freedom and their pride.

9. What is your greatest fear?That my people will all die away, our culture and achievements will be forgotten, and only the Sazars will be left in our land.

10. What is your most treasured possession?
My
memories of Tigun and Lalana, and my identity as a woman of Urdaisunia.
No matter what else the Sazars take from me, they can't take those.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Time for another author spotlight: introducing Jessica Keefe!1. Tell us a little about yourself.I'm
21, a mother, a wife, a nap time novelist. My life revolves around the
cutest 18 month old in the world who thinks I am the world. I never
realized how much I could mean to someone until my son was born. He
relied on me for everything. Food, entertainment, comfort, love, warmth,
safety, anything and everything he could think of a thousand other
things he couldn't. I'm pretty normal though. I watch Duck Dynasty and
play Candy Crush Saga, much to my husband's chagrin, since he thinks
it's a stupid game even though he's downloaded it too. I tend to read a
lot of historical fiction despite my inability to write it myself. My
two favorite authors are J.K. Rowling and Philippa Gregory. Through
their books I have learned so much about myself and what a good novel
looks like. Though we write different genres I hope to one day have an
ounce of the amazing talent they do.

2. When did you start writing, and why?I
started reading Harry Potter in sixth grade. During the summer before
seventh I was sad that the next novel in the series wasn't out yet, so I
spent two months writing fanfiction. I didn't even know what
fanfiction was at that point, but that didn't stop me from writing an
multi-thousand word epic about Draco Malfoy and Ginny Weasley. After
that I couldn't stop myself. I continued writing fanfiction until I
realized that I could create my own characters and my own world and make
them do whatever I wanted. That was it for me. That was all I needed. I
haven't stopped writing since.

3. What do you write, and why? What do you enjoy about what you write?I
have primarily written Christian romance fiction, including one little
fic-let that I actually started and finished in November 2009. The
Deceiver is my first attempt at another genre that has been
overwhelmingly successful. I don't read much science fiction myself, but
I've been told that I'm tapping into that genre, dystopia, and
cyberpunk; three areas I've barely touched the surface of as a reader. I
enjoy writing it though because it's powerful, people can relate to a
world that has gone so far in the opposite direction of Utopia that it
might just mimick the direction our own world is going.

4. What is your latest book? Any forthcoming books?The
Deceiver will be my first published book and with the ending already
in mind I know that it will have at least one sequel, perhaps even two
or three. As a reader I like to read series books because I get to
follow the characters through multiple adventures. I'm not going to
extend The Deceiver just to continue it, it honestly needs at the very
least a second book, but I'm glad that I will get to satisfy other
readers who feel the same way as I do about series novels.

5. "Welcome To My Worlds": Tell us a little about the world of your latest book.700
years ago a nuclear war between the countries destroyed a third of
Earth. Scientists and NASA had been sending people to the moons of
Jupiter for years. It was decided in the following decade that since
Earth was no longer liveable that they would need to terraform another
liveable planet.

700 years later they now inhabit three planets
referred to as the Triad Of Existence: Sagan-101, Hades-4, and
Enovia-23. At birth newborns are tested for their potential. Your
potential is decided by a series of tests run by a machine that then
sorts you in one of nine levels. Levels 1-3 are the lower class. They
have minimal ambition and are extremely dependent on the other two
triads. They live on Sagan-101, a planet that's mostly ice and covered
in snow. Levels 4-6 are the middle class. They are your average men and
women, not destined for great things, but capable of taking care of
themselves. They live on Hades-4, a planet populated by volcanoes and
in a state of what constant summer would be like. Levels 7-9 are the
upper class. They are people of superior intelligence, ambition,
strength, and possess all the skills it takes to survive on their own.
They live on Enovia-23, a planet made mostly of water that relies
heavily on the technology that keeps their man-made islands from
sinking. Earth is a prison state now. The only people who live on its
surfaces are criminals, which is a major plot point in the novel.

That's
not even half of what makes The Deceiver what it is. There's a tattoo
engraved on each person's wrist that taps into your limbic system,
reporting back to a database of computers your thoughts, emotions,
memories, and location. It's used as a way to keep track of every human
among the Triad Of Existence as well as keep tabs on the population
growth.

And then there's the Triad Of Colors, a cluster of three
brightly colored pills that the government created and perfected to
keep the masses in line. One that regulates heart rate and blood
pressure, making the taker more calm and attentive. One that dulls the
extremes of negative emotions and brings your amygdala levels back to a
place of normalcy. And one that damages the hippocampus, usually used
to distort short term memories so that they are unable to be
remembered.

There's a lot going on within The Deceiver, but it works.

6. Introduce us to some of your characters. What do you like about them?Elia
Davenport - She's my fiery red head and the reason behind the title of
the story. Deceivers are a job in the new world and she's one of the
chosen. Unfortunately she's been relegated to escort duty because of an
incident on Hades-4. I love her because she's strong and confident and
intelligent. But then she's also manipulative and secretive and always
hiding something or another. She's a treasure trove of secret thoughts
and bended rules.

Colton Bishop - He's one of the heroes. He
lives full-time on Hades-4 as a representative of the Enovia-23
government. A charming, self-effacing man who loved his mother as only a
child deeply devoted to his parents can. He trusts easily, but is
afraid of breaking the rules of the realm. Unfortunately he has a
Pandora's box of secrets that is just waiting to be opened. For a man
who doesn't like to break the law, he sure does have a knack for it.

Elric
Davenport - Our villain and the father of Elia. He's the reigning
general of Enovia-23, a position much like president, but he rules over
all three of the planets, not just the one he lives on. His greatest
plans are for the Triad Of Colors. He has always liked what they do, but
he wants to push them further. Rebels have been popping up for
decades, never doing much, but always disturbing the peace. Elric wants
the pills to have a bigger hold on the people. And some people, a
select few, are terrified of what that means and will do anything to
stop it.

7. A fun fact you would like your readers to know about you or your book.If
I don't know what to talk about, I talk about pie. Or cheesecake. It's
a wonder I am not fatter because of my obsession with both. The way to
my heart is sugary goodness. I even gave that quality to one of the
mothers in my novel.

8. Blog/site link, and where your book is available.The Deceiver is set to be published this December. You can find the Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/thedeceiver.jkeefe.
That's where I've been publishing excerpts, general musings about the
novel, and accompanying images to set the tone. You can also follow my
blog here: http://jessicakeefe.wordpress.com/. It's both about my personal life and my professional life. Because honestly, I'm not one without the other.

Other

Kyra Halland: Welcome to My Worlds is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

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About Me

Kyra Halland has always loved fantasy. She has also always loved a good love story. Years ago, as a new stay-at-home mom, she decided to combine those two loves - like chocolate and peanut butter! - by writing the kinds of romantic fantasy novels she wanted to read.
Complicated, honorable heroes; strong, smart, feminine heroines; magic, romance, and adventure; deep emotion mixed with a dash of offbeat humor - all of these make up Kyra Halland's worlds. She loves sharing those worlds with readers and hopes they will enjoy her stories and characters as much as she does.
Kyra Halland lives in southern Arizona. She has a very patient husband, two less-patient cats, two young adult sons, a lovely daughter-in-law, and an adorable granddaughter. Besides writing, she enjoys scrapbooking and anime, and she wants to be a crazy cat lady when she grows up.